1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to beverage dispensers, more particularly, to insulated beverage dispensers of the type having a valve for selectively draining beverage from the dispenser and methods of dispensing beverage from such insulated beverage dispensers.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
It is known to provide commercial beverage dispensers with an insulated, hollow body supported on a base with an inlet opening at the top for receipt of beverage and a operated faucet. In such beverage dispensers the drain hole is generally located at the bottom of the hollow body in a central location equidistant from the peripheral edges of the hollow body. The dispense tube is outside of the body and thus the beverage in the tube is not insulated by the body. If coffee, for instance, is served repeatedly in a relatively rapid fashion, then the lack of insulation does not result in a substantial drop in temperature. However, once service begins with a fresh brew, the dispense tube becomes filled with beverage and remains filled until the container is emptied. During periods between servings, the temperature of the beverage contained in the dispense tube continues to change in a direction toward the ambient temperature. For instance, if coffee is being served, the temperature drops from a high of approximately 200-degrees Fahrenheit and decreases toward room temperature of approximately 70-degrees Fahrenheit. In large dispensers, having a diameter of approximately ten inches, a dispense tube that extends from a center drain hole to the edge of the hollow dispenser body must be at least five inches long and then there must be another inch or more of length to attach the end of the dispense tube to the inlet of the faucet. The diameter of such dispense tubes may be one-half inch or larger, and consequently contain a significant part of a complete serving such needed to fill an eight ounce coffee cup.
Consequently, after a relatively short time the reduced temperature of the beverage contained within the dispense pipe will result in a substantial reduction in the initial temperature of the coffee when first dispensed into a coffee cup. Maintaining the initial temperature of the coffee when first served at or above a preselected temperature is critical for achieving the desired qualities of flavor, taste and aroma, but the inventor has determined that the present designs present a problem in achieving such qualities for the reasons noted above
It is therefore the general object of the invention to provide an insulated beverage dispenser and method of dispensing that overcomes the problems with known insulated beverage dispensers.
This objective is achieved in part by providing a beverage dispenser with a container body with a top, a bottom and a center, a top closure for closing the top of the container body except for an inlet opening for receipt of beverage, a bottom closure for closing the bottom of the container body except for a dispense opening for draining of beverage from within the container body, said dispense opening being spaced from the center and located between the center of the container body and a peripheral edge of the bottom closure.
Preferably, the bottom closure asymmetrically slopes downwardly away from the center and toward the dispense opening to drain beverage to the dispense opening. A part of the bottom closure that is farthest from the top is located adjacent the dispenser opening and spaced from the center. A dispense tube is connected to the dispense opening to direct beverage from the dispense opening to a faucet. The dispense tube is generally L-shaped and extends from the dispense outlet toward a portion of the peripheral edge of the inner container body that is generally closest to the dispense outlet opening. Preferably, the dispense tube is protectively contained within an insulating bottom section and is wrapped in insulation.
The objective is also achieved by providing in a beverage dispenser having an insulated hollow body for thermally insulating the beverage contained within the hollow body and having a center, a faucet for selectively dispensing beverage, a method of passing beverage from the hollow body to the faucet by performing the steps of passing the beverage to an off-center dispense opening at the bottom of the hollow body that is spaced from the center of the hollow body, passing the beverage through a dispense tube extending from the off-center dispense opening to a peripheral edge of the body that is substantially closest to the drain hole, and passing the beverage from the dispense tube to the faucet.